Remembrance
by Fragile B
Summary: Death is a private experience. Nobody likes to think about theirs, but now nobody can stop.


Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom.

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The bar was packed by the time Johnny arrived. He spotted a couple familiar faces as he scanned the room for an empty seat. He didn't see Kitty, and that was probably for the best. They'd been doing better lately, not as many fights, but Johnny didn't want to be near her today. It seems she had the same idea.

_"Come on, Kitty! Please!" begged Johnny. "Don't you trust me?_

Johnny found an empty stool near the corner. There were ghosts squeezed around it, but in a bar so crowded he either had to deal with it or leave. And Johnny needed a drink.

_"No, Johnny!" said Kitty, firmly. She softened at the betrayed look on Johnny's face. "I didn't mean that, Johnny." _

Lunch Lady was the working the bar, sort of. She was wiping the counter while absentmindedly floating beer to whoever was empty. Johnny didn't think she was supposed to do that, hell, he wasn't sure she actually worked here. But he didn't care to stop her and nobody else was going to either.

_"I know," mumbled Johnny, his eyes flickering to the ground. He looked up into her eyes and grinned. "So trust me now! You'll love it! I promise!"_

Johnny caught a bottle as it flew by and emptied it in three seconds flat. It didn't help.

"Hey, Johnny," said the ghost beside him. Johnny blinked as he recognized the ghost. Had she been there the whole time? Johnny must have been too distracted to notice.

_"Okay." said Kitty, with a small grin. "But only a short one, and don't go too fast!"_

"What are you doing here, Ember?" asked Johnny. He knew, of course. But he thought that Ember would spend today writing music or something. "I thought you would stay in your lair today."

Ember glared. "I don't think that's any of your business," she snapped. Johnny could be excused for not recognizing her. Instead of her normal rocker outfit she was wearing a loose sweater and baggy pants. Her hair was even acting like hair! Well... mostly. The occasional strand seemed to burst into flames regardless of her efforts to prevent it.

"I just... wanted some company. Is that a crime, now?" said Ember defensively.

_Ember sat alone in her kitchen. Her parents were out god knows where and she was home alone. Every few seconds she looked at the phone attached to the wall. "Can't be long, now," Ember said to herself._

"No," said Johnny succinctly. He didn't really want to talk and he hoped Ember got the hint. If she did than she ignored it. "Where's Kitty? You guys fighting again?"

_Ember walked home alone. Her band had broken up again. She didn't think she was going to get them back together this time, they just don't understand what she's trying to do. She's serious about making music, they just want to be popular. _

"No," sighed Johnny, "not fighting. We just need space. It's better if we don't remember... together." Ember nodded. "I've been trying to focus on the good times," she said.

_"Here!" Ember shoved the small scrap piece of paper into the boy's hand. She was terrified, but it didn't show behind her nervous smile. "Just call me, whenever!"_

"Does it work?" Johnny asked.

_"You're not bad luck, Johnny." Kitty smiled. "You have me, so I would say you're very lucky!"_

"It makes it worse," Ember answered.

'_He isn't going to call, is he?' Ember thought, sadly. She'd stayed up all night waiting for him to call. She was so tired. Ember wiped the sweat off of her forehead. 'Why is it getting so hot?'_

_ The wind in his face, the roar of his bike, and the amazing feeling that comes from going faster than ever before. Best of all, his favourite girl was along for the ride! Johnny swore this was the best moment of his life. Then a truck came out of nowhere._

Johnny grabbed another beer and in a second it was as gone as the first. Ember passed. She was there more for the people than the drinks.

At the other end of the bar some ghost that Johnny didn't recognize started smashing bottles against then wall. Johnny turned back to Ember and hit the table in frustration.

"Why the hell is this happening?" Johnny shouted. "We never used to ever think about this kind of stuff! So why are we now?"

"You know why," Ember sneered, "everybody know why. You heard him! If you didn't than you wouldn't be here!"

Johnny sighed. "Ya... Have you... Have you met the kid? I haven't seen him around." Johnny wasn't going to admit that he had been looking. He wasn't sure what he was planning to do to him once he'd found him.

"You haven't heard?" Ember laughed. "The kid survived." Johnny couldn't believe it.

"How!" Johnny demanded. "I heard him scream and I was out by the Far Frozen! There's no way he walked away from that!"

The bar got quiet, it seemed that many of these ghosts hadn't heard the news either. Everybody was staring at Johnny.

"What are you looking at!" Ember yelled at the rest of the bar. That caused conversation to start to pick up again, if a bit slowly.

"How?" Johnny quietly repeated.

"I heard he might be like Plasmius. Nobody I've talked to is planning on telling Vlad, though." Ember smirked. "We don't want him to get any more ideas, it's bad enough that he thinks he's better than us."

Johnny nodded his agreement to that. Plasmius was a dick. One problem, though. "Whatever he is, it isn't like Plasmius. Nobody knew about Vlad till months after he died, this kid, if you didn't see him die, you heard it. That's got to mean something!"

"Maybe!" Ember nodded her head. "He's got to be cooler. A half living teen, hmm, I've got to check him out." Ember had a predatory glint in her eye and as she spoke her hair started to go back to its normal blaze.

"He probably won't be as protective of his portal, either! Me and Kitty can go sight seeing without having to find a natural portal, now!"

"I need to prepare, maybe clean up my work, get an album together..." Ember was talking to herself now. Which was fine because Johnny wasn't listening.

"I should go find her! See ya, Ember!" Johnny pushed his way through the bar and ran outside to his bike. Hopping on, Johnny sped away. He had to find Kitty and tell her the good news.

Their luck was changing.

* * *

**I think that ghosts wouldn't like to think about death (especially theirs), so Danny's would sort of throw it in their faces.**

**I might come back to this and do other ghosts, but if I do it probably won't be for awhile. **


End file.
